Travelbag specialise in creating tailor-made holidays to a range of worldwide destinations.
From round the world trips to city breaks, beach holidays to escorted tours, We
can assist in booking hotels and cheap flights to Australia, New York, USA, Bangkok,
Canada, Sydney and other long haul holiday destinations from the UK. Travelbag can create the perfect tailor-made holiday for you.

Great Rail Journeys from Vancouver

First-time visitors to British Columbia normally choose one of the two routes between Vancouver and either Jasper – ‘Journey through the Clouds’ – or Banff – ‘First Passage to the West’. Both are a complete contrast to the Coastal Passage journey and both options take the same route from Vancouver as far as the overnight stop at Kamloops where the tracks of the Canadian Pacific take the southerly route to Banff while the Canadian National turns north east towards Jasper. There’s a great air of anticipation in Rocky Mountaineer’s own large station in Vancouver, as passengers meet one another and start the inevitable sharing of travel experiences.

With much sounding of the distinctive, haunting locomotive whistle so evocative of North American train travel, the Rocky Mountaineer eases through the suburbs and the market gardening area that straddles the Fraser River. At Hope the Fraser and Coquihalla rivers meet and the hills start to look more like mountains. For the rest of the journey the landscape forms a constantly changing series of spectacular mountain views. At Yale the railway clings to a shelf on the side of the V-shaped valley above the Fraser River to squeeze past its narrowest point at Hell’s Gate, named by the North West Company explorer who gave his name to the river, Simon Fraser.

At Lytton you look down on the confluence of the clear Thompson River and the muddy Fraser, and you may see whitewater rafters pitting their courage – or fear –¬ against the churning waters. After Spences Bridge the country becomes more arid, the land sprouting pale sagebrush and bunchgrass with the only vivid greens to be seen alongside the river. The train skirts the empty shores of Kamloops Lake before arriving at the important regional centre of Kamloops where buses wait to take passengers to the hotel.

Next morning ‘Journey through the Clouds’ sets off along the valley of the North Thompson River and through the gap between the Cariboo and Monashee mountains, passing such sights as the 300-foot drop of Pyramid Falls and the glacier that descends from Mount Albreda before a spectacular view of Canada’s tallest mountain in the Rockies, Mount Robson, at 12,972 feet. Soon after the train reaches the Continental Divide and drops down to the idyllically sited resort of Jasper, where one of the goliaths of the steam age is plinthed by the station.

Guests on ‘First Passage to the West’ leave Kamloops beside the South Thompson River, following it to the confusingly shaped Shuswap Lake with its tentacle-like arms ringed by mountains; it’s a favourite place for houseboat holidays – there is even a waterborne pizza delivery service. The on-board hosts will prepare you to look out for Craigellachie, where one of the most historic of all Canadian photographs was taken, when in 1885 Prime Minister Donald A. Smith hammered in the last spike of the Canadian Pacific, symbolising the tying together of the country.

After the ski centre of Revelstoke the railway runs right beside the thunderous waters of the Illecillewaet River through a canyon so narrow there is room only for water and rails. After the long climb to the Connaught Tunnel, there is a breathtaking panorama of mountains as the train leaves the northern portal. Another commonly photographed sight on the line is the graceful steel arc that leaps across Stoney Creek Bridge and the chasm beneath.

Admiration for the early railway engineers grows as the line climbs towards the Continental Divide through spiral tunnels in Mount Ogden and Cathedral Mountain to reach the summit at Stephen. Lake Louise is famed for its beauty and the now huge railway-built hotel overlooking it, so a stop was recently introduced at the station for those wanting to stay at Chateau Lake Louise. But an equally splendid and historic hotel awaits those continuing to Banff; the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel started to take its present form in the late 1920s and its location in the World Heritage Site of Banff National Park is a perfect place to end this mountain odyssey.

Author bio: Anthony Lambert is an award-winning travel writer specialising in Canada & Rail Travel. He is a member of the British Guild of Travel Writers and regularly writes for The Daily Telegraph, The Independent and Wanderlust Magazine

Sign up to Travelbag newsletter

Thank you!

There seems to be a problem subscribing. Please check details and try again

Travelbag takes your privacy very seriously and you can unsubscribe at any time. Please read our privacy notice.

SO YOU WANT A LONG HOLIDAY

(LENGTH OF STAY EXCEEDS 60 DAYS)

The duration of your stay is more than 60 days, but don't worry that's fine. We just want to make sure you get the best possible price.

To book this Long Stay Holiday please call one of our specialist advisors

Call now on 020 3944 2201

View My Booking

Please supply the following details of your booking:

Departure Date:

Lead Passenger's Surname:

Travelbag Booking Reference:

(6 or 7 numerical Ref.)

Important information is stored in your booking, if using a shared computer please ensure that you log out after you have finished. Read about the
security risks of using a public computer.

Please wait while we retrieve your booking.

You are about to leave the "View My Booking" section of Travelbag.co.uk.
Any Booking made outside of this section will not be attributed to your existing booking reference.
Do you wish to proceed?

Upon confirming a booking with Travelbag you will be passed a 6 or 7 digit booking reference,
this reference is unique to Travelbag and contains numerical characters only.
This is not to be confused with your flight, hotel, tour, attraction, transfer or car hire references.

Cookies: We use cookies to improve your experience on this website. By continuing to browse our website, you are agreeing to use our site cookies.See our cookie policy for more information on cookies and how to manage them.